Bay Area 2050+ Plan (left) • Montclair development PILOT • Street design & affordability • 541 units in New Haven • Paris prioritizes pedestrians (right top-to-bottom)
Article of the Week
CALIFORNIA—Plan Bay Area 2050+: Regional Leaders Adopt Blueprint for Housing, Transit, Climate
Ruth Dusseault, Local News Matters Bay Area | March 26, 2026
The Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) adopted Plan Bay Area 2050+, featuring 35 strategies to expand affordable housing, improve transit equity, and strengthen climate resilience. MTC also published the plan’s final Environmental Impact Report.
NJ TOD News
MONTCLAIR—Montclair Approves 30-Year Tax Break for Lackawanna Terminal Redevelopment With Grocery Store and 300 Apartments
Mario Marroquin, Jersey Digs | March 27, 2026
Montclair Township Council approved a 30-year PILOT for BDP Holding’s redevelopment of the defunct Lackawanna Terminal. The project will include 300 apartments—including 60 affordable units—a 40,000 sq. ft. supermarket, and 75,000 sq. ft. of office space near the NJ TRANSIT Bay Street Station.
HILLSDALE—Developers Unveil 256-Unit Rental Property in Hillsdale, With Leasing Now Underway
Joshua Burd, Real Estate NJ | March 26, 2026
Leasing began at The Piermont, a 256-unit rental complex from BNE Real Estate Group, Claremont Development, and March Development. It sits half a mile from the NJ TRANSIT Hillsdale Station on the Pascack Valley Line.
Sherrill Signs Executive Order for NJ TRANSIT to Improve Rider Experience
John Harrington, ROI-NJ | March 25, 2026
Gov. Mikie Sherrill signed an executive order directing NJ TRANSIT to enhance safety, accessibility, and reliability. The plan focuses on cleaner stations, improved lighting and cameras, and accessibility upgrades on NJ TRANSIT properties.
NEWARK—Construction Begins on 41-Story Summit Tower in Newark
Chris Fry, Jersey Digs | March 24, 2026
KS Group broke ground on Summit Tower, a 41-story apartment building in downtown Newark. The 514-unit residential project—including 20 percent affordable units—will replace several vacant parcels along Market Street and lie within walking distance of Newark Penn Station.
NEWARK—Leasing Begins at Historic Griffith Building After Years of False Starts
Nicole Zanchelli, TAPinto Newark | March 23, 2026
MIG Real Estate completed the historic Griffith Building renovation in downtown Newark. The development now offers 76 apartments and 20,000 sq. ft. of ground-floor retail near Newark Penn Station, Military Park, and the restored Hahne & Co. Building.
Transit and Equity News
What Street Design Has to Do with the Housing Shortage
Naama Blonder, Strong Towns | March 26, 2026
Street design often shapes housing affordability. Car-oriented layouts with wide roads, large setbacks, and cul-de-sacs limit housing diversity, raise costs, and worsen the missing middle housing shortage.
NEW YORK—Mamdani Administration Launches New Program to Deliver Affordable Housing on City-Owned Land Faster
Press Release, Office of the Mayor of New York | March 25, 2026
Mayor Mamdani launched the Neighborhood Builders Fast Track program to speed the delivery of affordable housing on City-owned land. Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) will pre-qualify developers, shortening the RFP process by up to eight months.
COLORADO—Colorado Is Losing 1 Affordable Housing Unit for Every 2 It Builds. But the State Keeps Rejecting Efforts to Stop the Bleeding
Brian Eason, The Colorado Sun | March 23, 2026
Colorado risks losing 24,000 affordable units over the next 15 years due to inadequate housing preservation policies. Policies designed to support affordable housing in Colorado—such as Proposition 123—prioritize new construction without funding preservation, leading to reduced impacts on affordability.
Regional and National TOD News
ILLINOIS—Could Congestion Pricing Pay Off for Chicago?
David Zipper, Bloomberg | March 26, 2026
After New York City’s success, Chicago officials are exploring congestion pricing to reduce traffic and fund public transit. Unlike New York, Chicago plans to toll highways rather than the central business district due to its slower post-COVID recovery.
CALIFORNIA—LA City Council Approves Plan to Allow Small to Mid-Sized Apartment Buildings Near Transit Stops
Dana Littlefield, LAist | March 25, 2026
Los Angeles will allow four-story apartment buildings in 55 single-family-zoned areas within half a mile of transit stops. This delays S.B. 79’s July rollout, which allows construction up to nine stories near transit hubs.
NEW YORK—MTA Lot in Crown Heights to Become 300-Unit Residential Building
Devin Gannon, 6sqft | March 24, 2026
The MTA released an RFP for a 300-unit mixed-use development on an underutilized parking lot near Franklin Avenue Station, including at least 75 affordable units. The MTA is offering a density bonus for proposals that include transit accessibility improvements.
CONNECTICUT—541 Apartments Approved for Union Square’s Phase 1
Thomas Breen, New Haven Independent | March 19, 2026
The New Haven Planning Board unanimously approved Phase 1 of Union Square, a 2,490-unit mixed-use development on 5.5 acres across from Union Station. This phase includes 541 apartments—with affordable units for residents displaced by the demolition of the Church Street South apartment complex—and 30,000 sq. ft. of commercial space.
International TOD News
CANADA—The Myth of ‘More Is More’ Keeps Canada Trapped in a Housing Crisis
Kent Mundle, Next City | March 24, 2026
University of Hong Kong Professor Kent Mundle argues that Canada’s upzoning land and cheap loan strategies have failed to improve housing affordability due to a lack of value capture mechanisms to offset speculative land value spikes. He supports community land trusts to stabilize land value and housing affordability.
FRANCE—Welcome to Paris, the City That Said No to Cars
Marie Patino, Feargus O’Sullivan, and Tom Fevrier, Bloomberg | March 20, 2026
Outgoing Mayor Anne Hidalgo leaves Paris more walkable, bikeable, and transit-friendly than in 2014 when she took office. The City pedestrianized the Seine, converted parking lots to green space, and expanded transit—changes that improved air quality, reduced car use, and created new destinations. Deputy Mayor Emmanuel Grégoire will succeed her later this year.